Education, Certificates, & Professional Memberships

  • Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition, Sonoran University of Health Sciences

  • Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS)

  • Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist (LDN) in Florida

  • Bachelor of Science in Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Everglades University

  • Member of the American Nutrition Association

  • Member of the American Herbalist Guild

My Story

I first became interested in herbalism because of my husband. Shortly after getting married, he ended up with a bad flu. At that time, we didn’t have health insurance and couldn’t afford for him to go to see a doctor, so we were treating it with over-the-counter medications which seemed to do nothing. He happened to have a book on traditional herbal remedies and asked me to look and see if there was anything in that book we happened to have in our kitchen spice drawer. From that book, I brewed him an awful-smelling tea that seemed to have more of an impact on his flu symptoms than anything we’d tried before. Within hours his flu seemed to just go away. From then I was hooked.

After a short time of self-study, my husband encouraged me to study with the Florida School of Holistic Living, where I completed the Roots, Family, and Community levels of herbalism. During this time I kept encountering the saying “food is medicine” and started learning about how food impacts our health.

Towards the end of those herbal studies, I started having problems with my thyroid. After discussing this health concern with several of my herbal mentors, I started developing a plan combining diet and herbs. It took a little bit to fine-tune it for my specific needs, but today my thyroid is healthy, and I am not dependent on any medications for thyroid support. This success, with a little help from a certain pandemic, drove me to start working on a Master's in Clinical Nutrition at Sonoran University, which I completed in 2022.

In 2023, I was given the opportunity to work in public health as a nutrition educator in low-income parts of my community. This experience showed me just how much our communities need nutrition education. Also in 2023, I became a Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS) shortly followed by becoming licensed in the state of Florida (LDN).

Dietitian vs. Nutritionist

Certified Nutrition Specialist - CNS

CNSs are board-certified, advanced nutritionists and licensed health care providers with specialized training in nutrition. CNSs may treat any condition that an RD would and, like RDs, CNSs provide medical nutrition therapy (MNT) and personalized nutritional counseling. They may also oversee community nutrition education programs and are often found in private practice or research institutions. In many states, such as Alaska, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, RDs and CNSs are granted the same state license, usually called a Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist (LDN) license.

Dietitian - RD/RDN and LDN

A registered dietitian (RD or RDN) is a board-certified food and nutrition expert. Dieticians are highly educated in the field of nutrition and dietetics and have the expertise to provide evidence-based medical nutrition therapy (MNT) and nutritional counseling tailored and personalized to meet an individual’s needs. They are qualified to practice across a span of settings, including hospitals, outpatient clinics, research institutions, or local communities. Many states require additional licensure in order to practice MNT. This is a Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist (LDN) license, and some of these states include Alaska, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.

Nutritionist

Nutritionist” is a broad term that includes individuals with various training and credentials, but it is not regulated in every state. In the U.S. states that don’t regulate the term, no degrees or credentials are required to be a nutritionist. Anyone who is an expert on the subject of nutrition, or how people nourish themselves, can call themselves a nutritionist in these states and often apply their interest in nutrition to anything from running a food blog to working with clients. They may provide educational programs or counseling in nutrition or meal planning services. Nutritionists cannot legally offer MNT or manage medical conditions through nutrition. They may provide general dietary advice and work with individuals seeking to improve their overall health, but they aren't qualified to manage specific medical issues.